{**}WATCH The Birthday Boys Episode 2 ONLINE FREE FULL IN HD

Good enough for The Ritz they may not be, but Alfred’s bouchées au fromage had the Abbey all a lather, as well they might in a week when the most exciting storyline was the imaginary hurricane that flattened Miss Sybbie’s toy farm. (Foreshadowing, do we think? Between that and the Dowager Countess’ allusion to Lord Byron’s fate, I’m beginning to think Paul Giamatti may arrive Sharknado-style, riding an oceanic twister that drowns the whole lot of them).

This week’s smattering of inconsequentialities is no doubt stage-setting for more dramatic times ahead.

Edith - displaying a great deal more mystery than a bucket - told her family she was off to Michael’s London office, but in fact went to see a doctor. After last week's monkeyshines, her visit can only mean one thing: another unwed pregnancy scandal is about to be stuffed into the Crawley family closet along with that dead diplomat, Ethel the prozzie, and the housemaid Robert got off with in series two.

This week's episode hinged on the 'specialness' of Troubled people - triggering our killer Trouble of the Week - with the common thread that parents are developing a school for 'normal' kids where kids from Troubled families aren’t allowed.

I’m going to get opinionated here but I can see the sense in creating a school for non-Troubled children away from the public schools. While some of the Troubles are harmless like Jeanine from the Reunion whose Trouble made everything she ate turn into to cake, there is a high volume of Troubles that are deadly or least dangerous without even meaning to be.

Don’t believe me? I can make a list. We can go through all four season if you like.

Most of the Troubles we see rack up an unintentional body count like Paul’s this week, or the firefighter whose guilt immolated innocent people offering him words of kindness; or cause severe damage like Jordan’s pain power, or Vicky the Intern whose art power can kill or take apart the town and arguably the world if she decided to draw and destroy it.

Comments

Most of the Troubles we see rack up an unintentional body count like Paul’s this week, or the firefighter whose guilt immolated innocent people offering him words of kindness; or cause severe damage like Jordan’s pain power, or Vicky the Intern whose art power can kill or take apart the town and arguably the world if sh